I posted this to the comp.home.automation newsgroup in January 96. Note that the person posting the question was doing it tongue in cheek.
>From: dshaw@cs.jhu.edu (David Shaw) >Okay, then is there any way to hack an appliance module to do dimming? :) Try any one of these: - Use an axe (you did say 'hack'). Warning, result unpredictable. - Try PWM. One second on, one second off -> about 50% brightness. - Try some dark spectacles - light will look dimmer. No X-10 needed! - Have the appliance module control a Rube Goldberg device to change the bulb to a larger / smaller wattage. - Hold the appliance module in front of the lamp to block the light. - Squint properly while sending dim/bright commands to the appliance module. - Replace the relay in the appliance module with a TRIAC circuit. - Wire a resistor across the relay contacts. Relay open -> dim light, relay closed -> bright light. - Use the appliance module to control a load that sucks so much current that it makes the lights go dim. - Send dim commands to appliance module and repeat to yourself: it is getting dimmer, it is getting dimmer, it is....